Osama Saeed

He was responsible for promoting the network's coverage of the Arab uprisings which won global plaudits, and culminated in awards including Royal Television Society News Channel of the Year and a Peabody.

[5][6] He has organised brand campaigns around the world - including in the United States, Australia, India, MENA and sub-Saharan Africa[7] - and is a speaker at international PR conferences.

[8][9] After the 2007 Glasgow International Airport attack, Saeed organised what is considered to be the first ever Muslim-organised demonstration against Al-Qaeda terrorism in the world.

He was formerly a volunteer spokesman for the Muslim Association of Britain in Scotland, and before Anwar Al-Awlaki openly embraced terrorism, he called for his release from incarceration in Yemen.

[15] He wrote a 2005 article in The Guardian suggesting that the restoration of a caliphate[16] could be based on democracy and human rights in response to comments by prime minister Tony Blair saying that it was the preserve of Al Qaeda.

[18] Saeed's time at the Scottish-Islamic Foundation was dogged by allegations of cronyism after the organisation was awarded hundreds of thousands of pounds of grants by the SNP Government, the party for whom he was a parliamentary candidate.

[24] His campaign concentrated on opposing public spending cuts proposed by the Conservative and Labour parties,[25] connecting Scotland to the high-speed rail network to London and Europe,[26] and attracted high profile endorsements.

[27][28][29] First Minister Alex Salmond said of Saeed: "I don't think I've ever met anyone better suited to face down the rigours of Westminster and to make a presentation of principle for his community and for his country.